Forever Destiny
by DecemberxAngel
Summary: ONESHOT Sora and Riku are back, but Sora's having trouble with his fears of losing his friends. But then he remembers the story of a certain starshaped fruit...


Yo, so this is just a little oneshot I cooked up. Riku and Sora aren't paired in this one--they're just friends. I'm going to be doing some random oneshots in between writing chapters for Pieces. I start work tomorrow, but don't worry--I'll update as frequently as possible. It won't be too long between chapters--a week at the most. Hope you enjoy my ficlet!!

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

Sora tossed and turned, unable to settle down and fall asleep. The bright moonlight spilled through his open window and illuminated his bedroom, making it seem like morning. After several minutes of fighting with himself, the boy gave up with a sigh and crawled out of bed. Ever since he had gotten back from his journey, he had had trouble sleeping.

_But maybe a little walk will help,_ he thought. Sora pulled on some jeans, a sweatshirt, and his shoes before padding out the door and onto the beach.

The night was warm and balmy, the stars sparkling clearly far above. A pleasant breeze ruffled Sora's cinnamon spikes. He stood gazing at the moon for a moment before making his way toward the small island by the cove. Ever since he was a little kid, he had gone there to be by himself and sort out his thoughts. And did he have a lot to think about.

He and Riku had been home for two weeks. Things had more or less gone back to normal, but for some reason Sora had been having trouble adjusting. He couldn't stop worrying, especially about Kairi and Riku. He spent as much time as possible with them, and when they were apart he would make up excuses to walk by their houses and make sure they were all right. He was constantly stressed and becoming increasingly paranoid. He barely slept, and when he did he would have nightmares of the darkness returning.

Sora sighed in frustration. What was wrong with him? He shouldn't be so stupid! Everything was fine, right? And besides, Riku had gone through a lot more than he had, and _he_ was acting normal. So why was Sora so restless?

The boy reached the island and sat down on the edge, his feet dangling high above the sparkling water. He began pulling bits of bark from the palm tree behind him and dropping them into the sea. His thoughts whirled frantically, and Sora sighed again. Despite his walk, he knew he wouldn't be getting any sleep that night.

"Any reason why you're flaying the tree?"

Sora jerked his head up in surprise to see Riku standing behind him, hands casually stuffed in his pockets. The silver-haired teen smiled, green eyes sparkling in the moonlight. Sora smiled sheepishly and offered a small wave.

"Hey Riku, why are you out here so late?" he asked.

"I should be asking you that," Riku replied, coming to sit beside his best friend. "I saw you leave your house, so I followed you."

Sora nodded absently and turned his gaze back to the water.

"Hey, is everything okay?" Riku asked, noticing the troubled look in his friend's sapphire eyes. "You've been sort of…out of it lately."

"I'm fine," Sora replied. "Just been thinking a lot."

"Thinking? That's definitely not like you," Riku teased. Sora glanced up to see the older teen grinning mischievously.

"Ha ha," Sora said, pushing Riku playfully. The smile fell from the normally bubbly teen's face, though, and was replaced by a somber look.

"Okay, now you're worrying me." Riku placed his hand on Sora's shoulder, causing the brunette to look at him. "What's bothering you?"

Sora sighed heavily. "It's just that…well, I'm scared, Riku."

"Scared?" his best friend repeated. "Scared of what?"

Unable to keep still, Sora jumped to his feet and began pacing. Riku didn't follow him, allowing the boy his space as he let out everything that had been eating at him.

"Ever since we got back, I've tried to be normal. I've tried to act like we had never left but….but I can't. What if the darkness returns, Riku? What if I lose you guys again? You, Kairi…you two are my world. I couldn't stand it if you were taken from me. I went through that once, and I can't do it again. I'll never forget what it was like without you. It was hell. Pure hell. I just…I'm scared of being alone again."

Sora continued pacing, his thoughts thousands of miles away. He had forgotten that Riku was even there; he had started talking to himself as he finally got everything out.

"Things aren't normal any more. They stopped being normal the moment I woke up in Traverse Town. And now I can't stand to have you two out of my sight, because if you're not with me that means you might be gone. I failed once at protecting you; I won't let it happen again."

At this Riku stood up and grabbed Sora roughly, effectively stopping his pacing. He locked gazes with Sora, concern in his eyes.

"What did you just say?" he asked sternly.

"I…I failed, Riku." Sora dropped his gaze to the sand miserably. "You and Kairi are my best friends. I should have been able to protect you. But I didn't. I was weak, and because of that Kairi lost her heart and you were taken from me."

Riku shook his head. "Stop it, Sora," he ordered. "You weren't weak, okay? You did everything you could to rescue us. You fought against the darkness when I gave in. You were the strongest one of us all."

The silver-haired teen put his hand under Sora's chin and lifted his head, making Sora look up at him. He was surprised to see that the brunette was crying.

"Sora," he said, emerald eyes widening. "How long has it been since you've slept?"

Sora sniffled, tears rolling down his cheeks. "Four days," he answered quietly. "If I sleep, I have nightmares. In them, you and Kairi…the darkness kills you. And I can't stop it."

Sora looked down again, the tears coursing down his cheeks even faster. Shaking his head in disbelief, Riku gathered the younger boy into a tight hug. Sora wrapped his arms around Riku and started to sob.

"Sora, Sora, it's okay, stop crying," he said soothingly. "The darkness isn't coming back. Kairi and I aren't leaving you. We'll never leave you. I promise. Everything's going to be okay."

It took Sora several minutes to stop crying. Once he had calmed down, Riku ruffled his hair in comfort. "Come on, you're tired. I'll stay with you tonight, okay? Maybe you'll sleep better if someone's there."

"Th-thanks, Riku," Sora stammered, wiping away his final few tears.

"Hey, what are friends for?" Riku said, smiling.

They walked back to Sora's house in silence. Once inside Sora's bedroom, the younger boy collapsed on his bed, exhausted. In seconds he was asleep for the first time in days.

Riku studied his friend for a moment before grabbing a pillow and crashing on the floor beside Sora's bed. He had noticed a change in Sora's behavior, but had had no idea how torn up he had really been.

_Poor kid, _he thought, _I hope he's gonna be all right._

He was woken up several hours later by an excited Sora.

"What the heck!?" Riku exclaimed when his best friend suddenly shook him awake.

Sora bounced eagerly on his bed, sapphire eyes bright. "I just had a great idea, Riku!" he said happily.

"And what could that possibly be?"

"Share a paopu with me."

Riku arched a silver eyebrow incredulously. "What?"

"You told me once that if two people share a paopu fruit, there destinies become entwined and they are always a part of each other's lives, no matter what. So share a paopu with me. That way we'll never be apart again. You'll never be taken from me."

"Sora, I already told you that I'd never leave you. And besides, the paopu thing is something boyfriends and girlfriends do." He smiled teasingly at Sora. "Or are you trying to tell me something?"

"Shut up, Riku," Sora said with a roll of his eyes. "Who says there has to be anything romantic about it? We'll just be making sure that we'll never be separated again."

Riku rolled his eyes as well and lay back down. "I'm not leaving you, Sora. Now go to bed."

Sora sighed in disappointment before laying back down, his back to Riku. And he thought he had had such a good idea, too…

When he woke up again, it was two in the afternoon and Riku was gone. The brunette sat up blearily, cinnamon spikes askew. He squinted against the bright sunlight that poured into his room.

There was something sitting on his windowsill.

Climbing out of bed, Sora picked up whatever the thing was and gasped in surprise. It was a paopu fruit, and part of it was missing.

There was also a note with the fruit. Sora glanced over it and broke into a smile.

Sora,  
I said I'd never leave you, and that's true. But if this will help you feel better, I'll do it. Now eat your piece.  
Riku  
P.S. We're still not dating. Sorry.

Sora grinned happily before biting into the sweet fruit.


End file.
